A SCHOOL in York has launched a big project to bring books to Africa.

St Barnabas CE primary in Leeman Road has started a programme called Big Stories for South Sudan after hearing about the lack of learning resources available to children in the newest country in the world.

Teachers at the school noticed a huge pile of big books, under a cupboard in the library which were used extensively ten years ago as the main way of reading with groups, or classes of children.

Now the school uses multiple copies of the same book or more often, interactive whiteboards. So St Barnabas is donating all their big books to South Sudan schools via the Curriculum Foundation.

Teacher Vikki Pendry came up with the idea.

Mrs Pendry said: "I have spent the last year working with an organisation called The Curriculum Foundation. They work all over the world developing a world class curriculum. Recent work, where I have been involved, is out in South Sudan.

"This is the newest country in the world and faces many challenges including children being used and soldiers and only 12 per cent of girls completing their primary education.

"When the teachers at St Barnabas heard about this work, they considered the learning resources dotted around school and compared them to the resources that schools in South Sudan have which are virtually none existent."

St Barnabas is donating all their Big Books to South Sudan Schools via the Curriculum Foundation. They will be used initially for teacher training and then will be distributed to the schools who need them most.

Mrs Pendry said the Curriculum Foundation would like to hear from any other schools in York who have lonely copies of big books that could be used to excite and inspire children in South Sudan.